Frank Lampard already fixing Everton problem Rafa Benitez was to blame for

It was rare to see Everton steam into a commanding 2-0 lead inside the opening 30 minutes against Leeds United on Saturday.

It was actually the first time the Toffees went into the half-time break with a two-goal advantage in any game this season, capturing some but not all of the issues they have faced.

A lot of the struggles they have had tie in with the tactical approach of former manager Rafael Benitez.

Although he’d most likely argue otherwise, the Spaniard often shackled his team’s attacking freedom, instead favouring a more cautious and wary style at the beginning of matches.

No doubt the idea behind that was to keep the scoreline tight, before growing into the game and scoring crucial goals in latter periods.

Yet it was rarely an approach that proved fruitful, which was evident from Everton’s results under the ex-Liverpool manager.

So far this season, the Blues have scored just eight first-half goals, which is a Premier League low.

They’ve also only scored the opening goal in six of their 22 league matches. Watford are the only Premier League side to score fewer.

It’s often overlooked just how crucial an opening goal can be, yet numerous football studies have concluded that scoring first will lead to victory roughly 70% of the time. Everton have suffered defeat in 67% of the 15 league games they have conceded first this season, adding merit to this theory.

Therefore, although it was too often overlooked by Benitez, fast starts can often be crucial in terms of securing victories, while slow ones can usually be big contributors to defeats.

Thankfully everything so far is pointing towards a much quicker and imposing style from Everton under Frank Lampard.

The new Blues boss has spoken on more than one occasion